Neville

Tserevo Koria

Tserevo Koria

 

Here in Tserevo Koria

Where I feel most alive

I sup alternately upon

The scent of wild thyme

And strawberries

Before scalding my mouth

On the first of many

Strong black coffees

Drawing and almost

Drowning on the breath

Of a brand new day

 

Today, I still remember

That steaming hot summer

When Nikolai built

The old stone wall for us

In less time than it took me

To write a single poem

And even then

Long after the sun

Was directly overhead

He seemed quite content

To place each stone and rock

Precisely where he knew

I wanted it to be

 

He also shed less sweat

Than those of us who

Sat and watched him labour

He knew of course

That wall of his would eventually

Be offered as a gift and serve

To protect those of us he loved

And lived within that perfect

Mountain harbour

We now call Tserevo Koria